Sesame Beancurd Crisps 芝麻巧果 - CNY Crispies # 3

This is another traditional Chinese snack. There are 2 types, one is called DanSan 蛋散 and another QiaoGuo 巧果. You probably might have heard about the word DanSan from Southpark, Cantonese version. Cartman(fat boy) is known as Dansan in the translated version. Dansan is also used to describe someone who is useless. "Lei jek dansan la, zhan mou yoong!" 你只蛋散啦，真没用

What's the difference between these 2?

QiaoGuo is made with beancurd dough and is unglazed. Sesame seeds is a must. Can be flat, or twisted
DanSan is made from an eggy dough and is glazed with sugar syrup. Sesame seeds is optional. It comes in twisted form only.

Flat qiaoguo

I actually grew up eating Dansan made by a old lady living across the street. And DanSans are made big, 4-5 inches long, and I loved the sugar syrup coating. She was an old widow who sold traditional Cantonese treats in the market. Sweet potato balls were sold at 10 sen for 3, and dansan were 10 sen each. That was at least 27 years ago. I was still very very small. I wonder if her only adopted son still knew how to make them...He's a mechanic now.

Anyway, back to my QiaoGuo. These weren't as soft as store bought. Maybe.. they added in some fat into the dough. My aunt did try making Dansan once with margarine in the dough (traditional ones don't) and indeed it's more crumbly rather than all hard and crispy. Or maybe I didn't roll it super super thin. But I do find those flat ones tasting much better.

My husband says, the taste is there, the texture isn't, because he was comparing to store bought ones. Anyway.... there will always be a next time, another time to try another version

You can try eating store bought version from Bee's Bakery. I'm suspecting they did put in some shortening to form the dough.

I actually tried making these from 2 recipes and this is the better one.

Sesame Beancurd Crisps

Recipe taken from YanHuoJian with minor adaptations

200gm all purpose flour

50gm sugar (I think

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp baking powder

50gm white sesame seeds

20gm black sesame seeds

1 egg

80gm firm tofu, mash with fork

Tapioca Starch for dusting

1. Combine all dry ingredients and mix to combine thoroughly.

2. Add egg and mashed tofu into the dry ingredients and knead until a dough forms.

3. Leave dough for 30 minutes, covered.

4. Roll dough as thin as you can. Dust with tapioca starch if needed.

5. Cut dough into rectangles.

6. Stack 2 rectangles together.Cut 3 slits vertically

7. Take one end and bring it through the middle slit. Pull it slightly.

8. Repeat step 6-7 until all dough is used up.

9. Heat a wok of boil, deep fry on medium heat until lightly golden (it will darken further upon cooling) and drain off excess oil.

10. When cooled, store in air tight container.

Still in Pyjamas and luckily they haven't change. They got all floury after playing

With this Fire Cracker,

Let me end the last of my CNY treats with a big BANG!